Self-propelled sprinkler



June 19, 1956 E. s. OLSON ET AL 2,751,249

SELF-PROPELLEID SPRINKLER Filed March 4, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet l Edmund 5. Olson John M. Reid INVENTORS.

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June 19, 1956 E. s. OLSON ET AL SELF-PROPELLED SPRINKLER Filed March 4, 1954 mm M United States Patent SELF-PROPELLED SPRINKLER Edmund S. Olson, Santa Rosa, and John M. Reid, San Francisco, Calif.

Application March 4, 1954, Serial No. 414,180 1 Claim. (Cl. 299-50) This invention relates generally to irrigation apparatus and pertains more particularly to an improved form of self-propelled sprinkler.

A primary object of this invention is to provide an improved sprinkler mechanism for irrigating large tracts of land and which is guided along the ground surface by means of a length of cable secured at its opposite ends to the ground, drive mechanism being associated with the sprinkler head for moving the sprinkler along the cable and means being associated with the water supply for automatically shutting off the supply when the sprinkler has reached its end of travel.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout and in which: Figure 1 is an elevational view showing the invention in use;

Figure 2 is a transverse section taken along the plane of section line 2-2 in Figure 4;

Figure 3 is an enlarged view, partly in section, showmg a portion of the sprinkler supply system;

F gure 4 is a top plan view of the sprinkler;

Figure 5 is a longitudinal vertical section showing the sprinkler with portion thereof broken away to show deta1ls of their internal construction; and

Figure 6 is a plan view of the automatic shut-off valve.

Referring now more specifically to the drawings, reference numeral 10 indicates the main frame or body member of the sprinkler which is preferably of channel configuration having a web 12 and spaced vertical side flanges 14. Secured transversely of and at opposite ends of the member 10 are the axle 16 and 18, each having a pair of wheels 20 and 22 journaled thereon for movably supporting the sprinkler.

A pair of uprights 24 and 26 are secured to the flanges 14 at an intermediate point on the body member and the uprights are connected together at their upper ends by a cross member 28. Removably secured to the cross member in offset relation thereto is a bearing plate 30 upon which thrust bearing 32 is mounted. A vertical conduit 34 projects through the bearing plate and thrust washer and a thrust collar 36 secured to the conduit, overlies and bears against the latter to support and properly position the conduit.

An end cap 38 is provided on the upper edge of the conduit and a pair of nozzle members 40 extend radially therefrom to terminate in angulated tips 42 whereby the conduit will be rotated by jet action of water expelled through the tips.

A supply pipe 44 is rigidly secured to the web of the body member 10 and carries an elbow 46 at the end thereof which, in turn, threadedly receives a sleeve 48. The lower end of the conduit 34 projects into the sleeve and is provided with a guide collar 52 slidably engaging the thrust washer 54. A removable collar 55 is positioned on the conduit 34 and a spring 57 interposed between this collar and sleeve 48 maintains the seal between the rim 52 and sleeve 48, as will be readily apparent.

Secured adjacent the upper end of the conduit but below the bearing plate 30 is a worm 56 in mesh with a worm gear 58 feathered to shaft 60 which is journaled between the uprights 24 and 26. Spur gear 62 is also keyed to shaft 60 and this gear meshed with gear 64 on shaft 66 also carrying gear 68 meshing with gear 70 on pulley shaft 72 which projects a substantial distance beyond one upright and carries a pair of pulleys 74 and 76 of unequal diameters. The diameters of the various gears is such as to obtain a substantial reduction between the speed of the conduit 34 and the pulley shaft 72.

To guide and move the sprinkler over the ground surface, a pair of stakes 78 are driven into the ground and a flexible member 80 such as a cable is securely fastened to one of these stakes while the opposite end of the cable carries a spring 82 attached to the other stake so that the sprinkler may travel over rough terrain without binding the cable on the pulley members, the cable being wrapped about one of the pulleys several times in the manner shown on Figure 4. The pulley utilized is determined by the desired ground speed of the sprinkler. A reel 84 may be attached to one of the stakes 78 for storing the cable when not in use.

The supply pipe 44 is connected to one end of a flexible hose 86 whose other end is connected to a valve member 88 on water pipe 90. A control lever 92 is attached to the valve 88 for controlling the supply of water and the end of the lever is connected to the hose 86 so that when the sprinkler reaches its desired limit of travel the lever will be swung to the off position.

To maintain the sprinkler in a straight path between the stakes 78 a guide block 94 is secured at each end of body member 10 and a pair of horizontal bores 96 and 98, one for each pulley 74 and 76, are provided therein to receive the cable 80 as seen most clearly in Figure 4. These blocks may be formed in halves, that is split along a horizontal plane passing through the bores so that the cable need not be threaded through them.

From the foregoing, the construction and operation of the device will be readily understood and further explanation is believed to be unnecessary. However, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction shown and described and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

A sprinkler comprising an elongated body member having transverse axles journaled at its opposite ends, wheels carried by said axles for movably supporting said body member, a pair of spaced uprights secured to said body member, a bearing plate carried at the upper ends of said uprights, a vertical conduit journaled in said bearing plate, a pair of nozzle members extending radially from the upper ends of said conduits and having angular tip portions at their free ends,.a supply pipe carried by said body member having a fitting at one end rotatably receiving the lower end of said conduit, a pulley journaled transversely of said body member, an elongated cable having a portion wrapped about said pulley, means connected to said conduit for rotating said pulley, spring means having one end attached to one end of said cable, ground engaging stake means securing the other end of the spring and the other end of the cable to the ground, and a pair of horizontally bored guide blocks in line with said pulley and secured to opposite ends of said body member, said guide blocks having the cable pass therethrough.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Munch Feb. 18, 1902 Buckner Sept. 3, 1935 Turner July 5, 1938 Adamson Sept. 23, 1941 FOREIGN PATENTS France July 20, 1923 

